Strays
by SereneCalamity
Summary: Clint has a habit of picking up strays. HawkeSilver.


_I've had this idea for sooooo long and I've finally gotten around to writing it! I hope you enjoy._

 _Disclaimer: I do not own the characters._

Natasha Romanova teased Clint about his bad habit of picking up strays.

Most of the time he just ignored her, or pulled the fingers, or if he was feeling particularly snarky, he would fire back at her that she was once one of his strays and he was really regretting the decision not to shoot her when she had the chance. Natasha would just poke her tongue out at him and skip off, undoubtedly going to find someone else to annoy.

There was the multiple cats and dogs that he would find looking straggly and close to death that he couldn't just walk past, and so he would take them home and nurse them back to health. Sometimes he managed to find homes for them, but a lot of time he kept them. It was difficult with the line of work that he was in, but he made it work, and it was easier when they all moved out to the Avengers base because there were always people keen to play and walk his dog. He had even had a parakeet for a short period of time before he found a little girl who's parents were willing to let her adopt it.

And then there was Steve Rogers, who bordered on a total goody-good and didn't particularly get sarcasm, but for some reason really liked Clint. They would go out running together, or Clint would watch movies and TV shows with him, catching their Captain up on all the pop culture.

Most recently, though, it was a pair of twins.

The Maximoff twins.

Wanda Maximoff, who still didn't quite grasp the lines of privacy, because she still sometimes dipped into peoples minds almost as if she didn't realize she was doing, and when they were out in public, once again subconsciously, she would use her powers to bring things out of reach to her. It wasn't that they wanted her to be ashamed of her powers, just not use them when they were in a crowded coffee store when if people caught wind of who they were, they would never be able to enjoy their drinks in peace.

And Pietro Maximoff.

Annoying, too quick for his own good, sarcastic, sometimes stroppy, _obscenely gorgeous_ Pietro. The kid—and he definitely was that, _a kid_ —given he was nearly twenty years younger than him, had wormed his way into Clint's life in a way that he hadn't realized he needed.

Clint had thought that he had a pretty good life. He had an amazing best friend, he had a great team, he had a job doing something that he loved albiet dangerous, and when he needed something a little bit more physical, it didn't hurt that he wasn't bad looking. His face wasn't as well known as Tony Stark's or Steve's, so it wasn't hard for him to slip by unnoticed, picking up a pretty girl or a handsome man.

He didn't think he needed anything more.

He was clearly wrong, because he needed Pietro.

He needed Pietro like he needed his quiver strapped to his back and his bow at his fingertips and air in his lungs.

Clint put two fingers in his mouth, letting out a piercing whistle as he looked out over the frosty field. The sun was only just breaking on the horizon, but he had been awake for the past three hours. They had been in a completely different time zone for the past three weeks, only getting back last night, and his body clock still hadn't adjusted. Which was fine, because he liked going for runs when the parks were all empty, and Lucky definitely loved being let off her leash to roam free. Clint whistled again, and a moment later, Lucky came sprinting over, her tongue lolling out the corner of her mouth as she joined Clint.

"Come on, girl," Clint murmured, reaching down to give her a quick pat on the head before taking off at a jog along the long, empty road that lead back to the Avengers compound. Lucky had been with him for nearly four years. When he had found her, she was a starving puppy, so covered in dirt that he could barely tell what cover her fur coat was, and she had a long, blood gash down one leg. He had wrapped her in his tee-shirt and taken her home, and now she was happy and healthy.

His feet pounded on the apartment and it was still cold enough in the morning that his puffs of air was showing in front of his face. He swiped his card and entered his passcode and then needed a retinal scan before the heavy gates started rolling open. Lucky was panting, she was probably in dire need of a drink given they had been running for the past hour and a half. Clint jogged into the compound, up the long winding drive, and he could see there were already a couple of agents jogging around the perimeter, obviously getting their morning work outs in before beginning the day.

"Here we go, girl," Clint ran a hose around the side of the compound, and Lucky lapped it up, splashing it the legs of Clint's sweatpants. He rolled his eyes, but waited until she lost interest in the water before turning the hose off and continuing in the base. The Avengers were all still in the compound, although Steve would most definitely be leaving once they had finished their debriefing today, since he had James 'Bucky' Barnes to go home to, and Clint was pretty keen to get out of there as well. Natasha would stick around, probably to bat her eyelashes at Sam Wilson some more, and Tony would undoubtedly be jetting off somewhere to take Pepper Potts somewhere, since he had missed their anniversary while they had been overseas.

Clint reached his room and swiped his key, stepping into the dark cubicle. Their rooms at the base weren't much, all very straight forward and simple, and they were good for just somewhere to crash and get some shut eye. But he was missing his flat screen TV and Netflix and the excessive amount of junk food in his cupboards. Maybe he was also missing his latest rescue, a stray he had named Oliver, a tiny calico kitten that his neighbour had been looking after while he was away.

Clint left Lucky eating her breakfast in the kitchenette, walking through his bedroom to his adjoining bathroom. He turned the shower on and came back into his bedroom, beginning to undress in the dark before he realized that there was a lump in his bed. He was down to just his briefs and sweatpants, his socks and shoes kicked off in the direction of the door, and his hoodie and shirt were in the washing basket, as he walked over to his bed. He tugged lightly on the covers, pulling them back until he was able to see a shock of white hair. He pulled them back further and he was able to see the sleeping face of Pietro Maximoff. When he was asleep, his face was relaxed, and he looked even younger, and sometimes Clint wondered if this was a step too far. The kid had already been through so much, he definitely deserved a shot at some resemblance of a normal life, which included a normal relationship. That was difficult in their life, but not completely impossible—as Tony and Pepper showed, and Steve and Bucky.

"Why do you stare at me?" Pietro's voice was rough with sleep, which made his accent stronger, as he spoke without opening his eyes. Clint ignored the question, instead touching his thumb lightly to Pietro's cheek before straightening up. Pietro opened his eyes, and they widened slightly when he saw Clint's state of undress, a smile curving cheekily on his full mouth. "Why don't you join me in bed?"

"I'm going to shower," Clint responded. "I want to get ready to leave, so I can just debrief and then get out of here."

"We're going home today?" Pietro asked, sounding more awake now and eager at the idea. Clint's heart clenched at Pietro calling his apartment 'home' and he couldn't stop his smile.

"Yeah, should be able to leave in a few hours," Clint said.

"Good," Pietro wriggled his shoulders as he made himself comfortable again as he rolled onto his side so that he was facing Clint. "Little Oliver will be missing me."

"Missing you?" Clint raised an eyebrow and Pietro smirked.

"He likes me more than you," he stated. Clint pulled the fingers at him and Pietro let out a huff of laughter. "Go shower, old man. Wake me so we can go get breakfast together." He pulled the duvet cover back up, presumably to go back to sleep. Clint's eyes shifted when he saw Lucky come padding into the room, nuzzling her face against Clint's leg for a moment before jumping up on the bed and curling up next to Pietro.

The older man looked at the two of them—two of his strays—and smiled softly, before disappearing into the bathroom.

 _Leave a review, let me know what you think :)_


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